This season, for the first time, the Riordan volleyball team is playing in the West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL), with all the new challenges and opportunities that this offers.
The 2023 fall season for Archbishop Riordan’s girl’s volleyball has brought a major change for the growing sport. The volleyball team’s entrance into the WCAL has brought new competition and teams. The volleyball players are excited to play in a more competitive setting.
During the 2022 season, the girl’s volleyball team played in a freelance league where they set up games with whoever was available.
“We didn’t have a league last year. We always just created an independent schedule,” Jennifer Curtin, head volleyball coach commented. “We saw some good competition but we were playing whoever we could get.”
Followed by the creation of the girl’s volleyball program after Riordan went co-ed and development of the program with Coach Curtin taking charge in 2022, both the WCAL and Riordan believed that the volleyball team was in a position to enter, and the team was added to the league this year.
“Now that we’re in the WCAL, though, the biggest difference I would say is that we’re dealing with teams that have a history of winning who’ve created cultures at their school,” Coach Curtin commented. “And so now the biggest challenge we face is just the discipline and the depth that we see from WCAL teams.”
The 2023 WCAL season consists of seven teams: Archbishop Mitty High School, Saint Francis, Saint Ignatius, Sacred Heart Cathedral, Archbishop Riordan, Valley Christian, and Presentation.
As of Oct. 14, Riordan’s current standing in the WCAL is 1-8. The volleyball team needs a rank of 500 or better in non-league matches to qualify for the playoffs, which they are currently on track for, and WCAL league wins also help with this opportunity to get to the playoffs.
With a team of 14 players, nine of which are juniors, the volleyball team has grown over the past seasons and the friendships within the team continue to help them play their best.
Elizabeth Savedra ’24, Captain of the varsity volleyball team, said, “Our main goal is to play our best and show that we’re not intimidated by all these other teams, and show that even if we’re new, we can start to compete against all these bigger teams.”
Riordan’s volleyball team is continuing to build on the foundation from past years, and hopes to continue to improve the quality and community of the team into the future.
